1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image processing device, an image processing system, and a control program for the image processing device. More particularly, the present invention relates to an image processing device, an image processing system, and a control program for the image processing device which facilitate setting of the image processing device.
2. Description of the Related Art
Image processing devices (such as a multi function peripheral (MFP), which is a composite machine provided with scanning, facsimile transmitting/receiving, copying, printing, data communicating, and server functions, a facsimile machine, a copier, a printer, a scanner, and the like) may be provided with a user authentication function. The user authentication function is a function used by the image processing device to determine user's legality (use authority) according to whether the person who attempts to use the image processing device is registered in advance. The user authentication may be performed using one of the following methods: (1) perform a typical login process by prompting the user to input an ID and a password; (2) read a magnetic card or the like provided to the user; and (3) perform biological authentication using a fingerprint and the like. The user authentication is initially carried out every time a user attempts to use the image processing device.
The user authentication enables identification of individuals who use the image processing device. The image processing device may be provided with a function of customizing an operation screen (operation panel) for a respective one of the specified users to display a customized screen dedicated to the user. In the customized screen, color settings and display items may be registered according to the user's preferences. In addition, for improved accessibility, color settings which can readily be identified by a person with an impaired color vision, and a character size which can readily be read by a person with weak eyesight may be registered as well.
To set up the device for improving accessibility, however, the user needs to do so via an initial-state operation screen, which may be difficult for the handicapped user to operate. That is, the person with an impaired color vision or weak eyesight will have to perform setting of the device via the operation screen in the initial state in which the person will have difficulty in reading the contents.
To solve the above-described problem, it may be conceivable, as described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-344681, to register personal information including the user's sense of vision as well as sense of hearing on an image processing device in advance and change the display contents based on the personal information.
It may also be conceivable to store personal settings for a respective user, in addition to a customized screen therefor, in the image processing device. For example, security-related settings, including the use of encryption and/or electronic signature when transmitting e-mail, and default settings for a job operation, may be stored.
Further, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-231760 discloses a technique to save the troubles of setting, while keeping security, by retaining various kinds of setting values for a printing device for each user. When a registered, authenticated user logs in to a printing device, the printing device stores, in a storage unit, settings which determine the working condition of the device. At the time of next login, the printing device reads the settings from the storage unit to operate based on the read settings.
The settings include a color designation for the operation screen included in the printing device. With the settings, colors for the background of the operation screen, characters, and keys may be set individually.
In the case of registering a customized screen as described above, there are many items that can be set, and thus, it would rather be troublesome for the user to set the colors and display contents to suit the user's preferences. That is, it takes a lot of troubles to store the settings for the operation panel and for printing for a respective user, as in the technique disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2006-231760 described above.
Furthermore, in the case of registering personal information including the information related to accessibility for a handicapped person, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-344681 described above, the contents concerning privacy issues including the user's sense of vision and sense of hearing would have to be registered, which is undesirable in consideration of the risk of leakage of the personal information.
Furthermore, in the case where the security level set in the image processing device is poorer than the security level set in a private personal computer (PC) the user usually uses, the user may not be aware of it. This is undesirable because security vulnerability, unintended by the user, would exist in the system.